On an ordinary day as Peter and John went to the temple for prayer, a lame beggar experienced the healing power of Jesus. In doing so, we find God's sovereignty in the midst of suffering and healing through faith in Jesus Christ.

The description of the early church provides us with a prescription: the need to work out our love for God and each other is central to the life of the church at any time.

Whereas the Holy Spirit had previously only been given in limited situations, he was and is poured out on all who believe in Jesus as messiah. This was the message of the Spirit-empowered Peter as he addressed a diverse audience in Jerusalem, a message that has not lost its power or significance.

In both the betrayal and death of Judas and the selection of Matthias, we see the Spirit's invincible purpose and unwavering zeal for the will and glory of God in all things from the opening chapter of Acts.

At Pentecost, all disciples received the awaited Holy Spirit. Still today, we are called to live lives that are filled and empowered by the same Spirit.

Jesus' disciples obediently returned to Jerusalem to await the arrival of the Holy Spirit but they did not just sitting around doing nothing. In what would become a hallmark of the early church, "they all met together and were constantly united in prayer." (Acts 1:14)

Jesus' resurrection was not the end of his work on earth. We find his disciples commissioned and empowered through the Holy Spirit to be Christ's witnesses as we begin to work through the book of Acts.

When we experience the joy of the Holy Spirit, we taste the joy that is at the core of ultimate reality, which is God and His glory.

Christ's death and resurrection is an historical event and we read the historical account from the source material in this Easter tradition.

With His identity and authority grounded in the Father, Jesus was able to assume the role of a foot-washing servant to show His disciples what self-sacrificing love really looks like.